Diageo Nears SEC Settlement Over Bribery Probe

Diageo PLC, the world’s largest spirits company, is nearing a settlement with the Securities and Exchange Commission to end a foreign bribery investigation by paying more than $10 million, sources told the Financial Times(sub req).

Chris Ratcliffe/Bloomberg News

A sign for Guinness produced by Diageo PLC sits on a beer tap in London, U.K., on Tuesday, July 6, 2010.

The London-based company that owns Johnnie Walker scotch and Guinness beer has been under an SEC investigation for several years in which the regulators looked into whether Diageo employees or contractors paid bribes in South Korea, India and Thailand, the FT reported.

Both the SEC and Diageo declined to comment to the FT. The Justice Department is not part of the investigation, sources told the paper.

The talks are at an advanced stage, and the penalty could be between $10 million and $20 million, the sources said. The investigation was triggered by a customs fraud case that led Diageo to lose its import license in South Korea.

Diageo said in an April SEC filing that several of its current and former employees have been subject to investigations by authorities in Seoul. Two former Diageo Korea employees were convicted for making improper payments, and two current and one former employee were convicted on various counts of tax evasion, the company said.

Diageo said in the April filing it voluntarily reported the allegations related to the convictions for improper payments to the SEC and the Justice Department. It said the company’s internal investigation was ongoing.

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